Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. $ELS Shares Sold by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al trimmed its position in Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE:ELS) by 9.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 310,366 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 32,200 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings in Equity Lifestyle Properties were worth $18,811,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 4,948 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 14,229 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $864,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. M&G PLC raised its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 3,293 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $201,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 27.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,250 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 21,327 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,295,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. 97.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ELS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zelman & Associates initiated coverage on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Monday, March 16th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $59.25 price objective on the stock. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Equity Lifestyle Properties currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.27.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE ELS opened at $63.10 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a current ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market cap of $12.24 billion, a PE ratio of 31.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.69. Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. has a one year low of $58.15 and a one year high of $69.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $64.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.47.

Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.28). The business had revenue of $397.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $395.71 million. Equity Lifestyle Properties had a net margin of 24.99% and a return on equity of 21.22%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.57 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be issued a $0.5425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. This represents a $2.17 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Equity Lifestyle Properties’s payout ratio is presently 108.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Equity Lifestyle Properties

In other news, Director David J. Contis sold 3,000 shares of Equity Lifestyle Properties stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.22, for a total value of $201,660.00. Following the sale, the director owned 14,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,000,905.80. The trade was a 16.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Equity Lifestyle Properties

Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc (NYSE: ELS) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust specializing in the acquisition, development, ownership and operation of manufactured home communities and recreational vehicle resorts. The company’s portfolio includes more than 450 properties across the United States and Canada, serving over 200,000 residents and visitors. ELS organizes its operations into two primary segments: manufactured housing communities, which provide long-term housing solutions, and upscale RV and seasonal resorts designed for leisure travelers and seasonal patrons.

In its manufactured home division, ELS offers home-site leases combined with community amenities such as landscaped common areas, clubhouses, swimming pools and organized resident events.